Head hunters... do they have a head?

In a recent job search, I was approached by several head hunters who claimed that I have an impressive profile and their "direct" clients are "VERY" interested in speaking with me... BUT... There is always a BIG BLOODY BUT!

Here is what happened - I've gathered a particularly interesting set of skill sets across the industry domains & happen to be domain agnostic - now what does that mean? It means that I'm not tied down to a manufacturing, financial, logistics, retail or insurance domain.

Where do the head hunters fit in? Several of them, who had the BUT in their discussion with me, wanted me to add domain specific jargon in my resume. Some even went to the extent to say, I've had lunch/dinner with the hiring manager and he/she wants to see if you had insurance experience, or healthcare experience. Yes, I've worked in the insurance domain, & yes, I've worked in the healthcare domain - but on small projects - not the extent to which the hiring manager is asking for! Just because you've committed to the hiring manager & you don't want to see your commission goals to be missed, don't expect me to add fraudulent information on my resume & then get black listed when it is caught!

One head hunter actually told me, just let me edit your resume. I will put in all the key words that the hiring manager needs to see, & I will coach you on the jargon that she wants to hear! You will definitely be hired! I assure you that you will be hired.

NO NO NO NO NO NO!

If you want to hire me for the experiences and expertise I bring to the table... GREAT!

Allow me to sell my profile to you, on the merit of my capabilities and my ability to learn and excel in the domain you are currently managing. If you believe that I'm not a fit for your organisation, no worries. Let's shake hands and walk our paths.

I'm not standing in line!

A while back, I wrote about what prompts some one to quit/move along & look for change!

While working with different departments in the office, I started looking @ employees who have stayed along for 10, 20 & 30 years with my present organisation! Some of them are here for the right reasons... some just don't like change... this prompted me to look @ what makes a job so great and what makes you want to get up every morning looking forward to go to work!

It was not the work itself... but the "worker" that made the difference... that made it remarkable!

What is that sets that "remarkable" worker bee apart from others and make him/her the general and leave the others in the dust???

Celebrate in public, berate in private!

Project management, leadership gurus and every one who sits on a "high" throne, always suggest that you celebrate in public. Go all out and host that surprise party to reward your star performer. Acknowledge that extra effort. A simple thanks when you encounter him/her in the walkway. On the same note, don't publicly praise the shy guy/gal. They will retract into a shell. Take that effort to know your team and understand who prefers to be acknowledged in a private manner.

You want to kick that a#&; in his/her a#&;! Don't do it in the open. Not unless you want to build a reputation as being an a#&; yourself and generate some hate in the departments! Being sensitive has its advantages...you can discuss sensitive issues beforehand and agree to disagree and avoid a potential firestorm!

Think outside the "Box". Was there even a box? Sorry, did not notice it!

Job descriptions - honestly - that's what the HR dept wants to document as a point of reference, for legal requirements. Those who strictly live and die by their job descriptions... they are ones who suffer the most. I've constantly heard folks say - I will not do that... its not in my job description! Hey... I did not ask if you "will" do that... I asked... "can" you do that job... do you want to learn? Do you want to be known as the "stone wall", or do you want to be the one who is knows as the person who will tackle the job, because it is the need of the hour? When a project is in jeopardy, its the "do"-er who will jump in, just because it needs to be done!

Some times, this can be seen as a#& licking by those who stick by the code of the "job description"! Let them be... they will learn when they have to report to you & understand the difference between taking the horse by its reigns and being an a#&!

"Wacko Jacko" - thats me! Mellow, yellow... sure!

Do you have the disheveled, unkempt, quirky, often "different", team member? Pay attention, they are the ones who have the "out of the world" ideas, which just seem to work! They will be a delight to work with, if you can get off your high horse of how a person should look like & behave!

People who don't care about the boundaries of things often end up challenging what is norm and are able to look for solutions well beyond the realm of where ordinary worker bees stop!

Shall I hold my pinky high while drinking high tea ma'am?

On the flip side, the same Whacko Jacko, if s/he knows what works and what doesn't, (with people), will know when to put on the "normal" suit, and blend right into the crowd and be a team member :). Now achieving that balance, is what makes Jacko, "Mr. Jacko"!

I'm the fiddler!

Don't let the child in you die, as you mature! The day you stop asking questions, just because no one else is asking, you kill the inquisitiveness, you kill the desire to know! As long as you have that one curious person, it will always be a fun day! S/He just cannot stop changing things, because they asked a question and the answer led to a change, which will eventually lead to success!

Silence is golden?

The fiddlers are usually the quiz masters. They cannot and will not keep quite! Not every one will go with the flow and nod their heads to the directions given!

"What will happen if I take the turn here and not 10 miles from here?"

They are the ones who will not hesitate to speak up when they think that some thing is wrong. I've seen a 2 day old (2 days in the company) employee, question the CIO during a townhall session, just because he thought that the suggestions did not meet the company's vision! Turns out, he was right, & the CIO had missed out on a critical piece of the puzzle! Bravo for him.

You are on!

I spite thee, you doubter! Just because some one with years of experience says it cannot be done, does not mean it cannot be done! Taking on challenges is like being on an adrenalin rush to these guys! Knowledge is a must, but sometimes, it ends up becoming a hindrance to reach the goal! Remember the little girl in the Matrix movie, telling Neo to unlearn what he knew, so that he can bend the spoon? Remarkable employees have the urge, the innate desire to show good results, that they do not let traditional learning or knowledge slow them down!

Waldorf... ripoff!

Some time ago, a friend of mine stayed in the Waldorf Astoria, NY. ooooooh!!!

I went in to visit him and saw the hotel, it has all the so-called grandeur of yester years! They charge you $45 for a cup of coffee and $125 a night, for wireless internet! WHAT???

During the same trip, he stayed @ a double tree resort hotel, while travelling in another part of the country. For $99, he had free coffee, free breakfast, free wifi (which was faster than what the Waldorf provided), quicker access to a cab (the waldorf has a 10 minute trudge from your room in the 20th floor & then another couple of minutes wait for a cab!) and beautiful (unrestricted by a concrete jungle) views!

This got me thinking, what the heck are you paying for, in the Waldorf? The wallpaper there, seems to have remained unchanged, in the last 35 years... and yes, they still use incandescent bulbs - gives you an eerie glow, when combined with the  wallpapers!!! Was it the so-called proximity to "everything", or was it the option to raise your pinky finger, when having HIGH tea, with the "socialites"!!!

What ever it is, it does definitely lower your stress... in your wallet!!!

Smart? Phone!

With each progressing year, the "smart" phones, are getting smarter!! A few years ago, I switched to a Nokia Symbian phone, & was amazed at what the phone was able to achieve!! I was able to store 256 mb of music on the phone!!! … can you believe that??? Today, with the way the phones have enmeshed themselves in our lives, I decided to take a step back & see what am I doing with my phone, besides the obvious internet surfing, emails, calendar & talking to it: It's my TV remote… no, wait… it's my universal remote for the entire entertainment center!! I can surf the channel selection, see whats on, read a synopsis/reviews & tell the TV to switch to that program!! I can "tell" the google tv, what I want to search!! Play my music on the phone, via the entertainment system, while sitting on the couch!!! Turn the dial down to a cool 75 degrees on a hot day, or enable the security system!! Duh!!! How could I forget? It can make a few calls too! ;) And to do justice, I wrote this article on the phone too!! Now, when will the phone go & make me a drink???

Welcome to Amreeka

A recent comment/blog from a friend on how she encountered a whole series of changes when she moved to the US, recently, prompted me to think about the changes that we, as a family, encountered, when we moved to the US!

About 85% of my career, prior to moving to the US, was working for the US based clients. We were trained in the knowledge, the culture, mannerisms, etc! We could talk the talk, and not know a bit of what happened outside of the office... nothing about the day to day nuances. The small things... where do you go to buy something?

Fortunately, I had travelled to the US, a couple of times, before the actual move... the innate mechanisms & mannerisms of day to day life in the US, was not as much of a shock for me, as it was, for my wife! But the small things such as grocery shopping, restaurants etc; they were a big change! Again, fortunately, I moved to New Jersey - the, so called "HUB" of Indian population. It definitely eased the transition, quite a bit!

One thing stands out quite a bit... we end up calculating the cost of everything in INR & then gasp @ the high cost of living!! It takes a while before you stop doing it... and then you don't even look @ the transfer rate to send money to India!

No matter where we Indians land... we need our place of worship... we need our temples! And temples outside of India, especially in the western hemisphere... are clean enough to be able to eat off of them... wait, maybe not that clean... but pretty darn clean! And yes, you pay in $s for the services... not in INR ;)

Some things turn out to be quite funny... simple things like what we call plastic covers ... they are bags here!

You live for years and not know your next door neighbor, but you get to hear a complete life story from some one in a 2 minute ride up the elevator! I don't know why you are still seeing the drunk or trying to seduce your boss!

Weather - yes... the ever dependable weather service on your smart phone... you will not plan your day without consulting the weather service! If the weather man says, then you will wear a hooded parka to the beach in 80 degree weather!

This is a land of "do it yourself", or DIY, for short! Everything from changing the oil in your car, to building an additional suite for the house! And of course, you can be a DIY doctor too... web MD to the rescue!

Talking about doctors... you no longer go to the neighbourhood pharmacy shop and ask for medicine! You have to decide on what you want, and pick it up from the counter on your own! Want anything stronger than the OTC medicine... go to a doctor and get a prescription!

You don't have your bhaaji waala come by on a regular "sked-jule"... but go to a walmart, or a target, a store which is several football... pardon me... "soccer" ball fields large! You get everything from the can of soda you want, to the cheesy snack; some beer & wine to wash it down; condoms & lubricants for afterwards... and if you were too drunk... they also sell cribs, strollers, diapers! How could I forget... you can even get laptops, ipads, 75" TVs, blu-ray players and the movies to go with them, for all your entertainment needs... these mega stores... are truly one stop shops!

You eat food @ a restaurant & ask for the check... no one would understand a "bill"!

Food - yes, Vegetarians can survive here... and quite well too! I'm a perfect example :D

And yes, you can experience road rage from some one, aimed at you, because you honked @ them!

Moving forward, several years, we got to know of a couple - typical Indian situation - husband came to the US to study, and then settled down here to work. Went to India to marry an Indian which his parents chose! The wife - she was straight out of college, not having seen much of adult life, outside of her hometown! Her first taste of the "so called" freedom, was in the US. They enjoyed, were here for a couple of years. Did well for themselves. A few months ago, owing to the pull of family, they bit the bullet & moved to India. He was fortunate to get a position in his existing company. The first thing that may come to mind is they moved to their roots, it will be comfortable! WRONG! The guy has not worked outside of the US and working for a US company, but in India - that's a whole different ball game! He is finding it tough to adjust! The gal, she is finding it tough on the home front too! She is finding the country & culture as a whole has moved forward and changed too... with the changing tide of time!

Now... its been a couple of months since they moved to India, & they cannot wait to come back to the US.

Looking @ all these, any one moving back to India, brings about the same thoughts I had, when I was moving to the US.... we'll be strangers all over again!

Work Vs Education

I saw a dialogue between reporter and a CEO of a major hotel organisation! The crux of the discussion was job creation. What struck me was the comment by the CEO stating that they openly hire individuals who may or may not have high school education! He also went on to state that they promote hard working staff internally to senior positions. When asked by the reporter, he stated that though they don't have a corporate education program!
This tells me that they are willing to exploit the undereducted for their profits, and keep their bottom lines low. Show the under educated that they are able to get a job without a solid education to go with & you have a high rate of high school drop outs, who see easy money without the need for education!
All this when the education drop outs, rates of job less individuals is @ an all time high! And the jobs that are available, are either low pay jobs or jobs that require special skills/education or expertise to go with it... whch are either un-interesting or un-attainable to these individuals in question!
And this may not be a surprise to you... the US is one of the few "developed" countries which promotes kids to work, in the name of teaching "self reliance"! And no points for guessing who has the highest school drop out rates in the world! And to top it off, the basic education - upto 12th grade, is free and mandated by law!!
What is needed here is a major culture change in the mindset of people that education is a necessary part of life. Children working after school or before school, is unacceptable. Higher education MUST be made more attaianable, less expensive and easily accessible to the general public! The companies should stop hiring folks who do not have a certain basic education! Yes, it will increase your cost, but it will also increase your talent pool and you will have a population that slowly (but surely) becomes highly intellectual!!

I like to move it, move it... I like to ... MOVE IT!

Remember the song from the "Madagascar" movies?

Well...I sang that song for my career a short while ago when I moved from an IT Service Delivery role to a PMO role - Project Management Office. The change was intentional, long awaited & painful.

Painful?? Why painful, when it was intentional and long awaited?

Being in the IT Service Delivery role... the job was & is all consuming! Its a 24x7 roles where in you are on-call all the time. It was a job of constantly checking your phone for emails/alerts and be on top of things. It was a role of reporting to to two bosses in two totally different organisations. Working in a vendor organisation, you are responsible for the client's IT, by using your resources! Talk about resources, you are a full fledged HR manager for your human resources & constantly battling with the client and their emotions! Its creativity @ its literal cutting edge! Its a high that can only be described as what a woman feels when she is pregnant! There are some who cannot get over this high and choose to constantly be pregnant! I was in that fast paced, burning up, lack of sleep environment for a long time! Decided finally that it was time for a move....

Made a concious decision, planned my steps and told myself... I don't want to be pregnant any more ... I want the baby out and want to see it growing!!! I outsourced the care to someone else and moved on to working for a PMO! The upside is that it is a relatively peaceful (coming from my background) role, has a lot more structure and demands a ton more mature thinking!

The downside... post partum blues!!! To all those mothers... U know what I'm talking about! In the beginning, there were sleepless nights, waiting for the phone to ring! Constantly checking the phone for emails and waiting for the phone to ring! Don't have a team that would call me in the middle of the night and scream about a production server going down and half the world on the phone screaming instructions to resolve the issue!!

Nothing of that sort happens! Thankfully, I was weaned off in a gradual manner. One of the projects I took on as being a part of the PMO, required me to be on phone calls and meetings in the initial phases... gradually reducing in frequency! A few camomille teas a day calm the frazzled nerves to take it easy :)

Is the role not demanding enough?? Absolutely not! Its got more than its share of challenges. You have a much more diverse team. Your personal portfolio of experiences and projects expands widely! You not restricted to performing tasks in one segment of the industry alone! Give it a few years and you can boast of having worked on everything from business to financial projects, software roll out to software development, IT infrastructure deployment to outsourcing! Beleive me when I say this... its one of the best decisions I've made!

Continuing on... I like to move it ... move it... I like to ... MOVE IT!!

Why the rich become richer.. a small view of the pie

Here is some food for thought... why do the rich become richer? I'm looking @ small view of the pie - education.

I've seen quite a good # of researchers, venture capitalists, top notch heads of firms... a good # of them who shone out young, were the ones who did not have the challenge of money/funding/cost hanging over their heads. They are the ones who take crazier/bolder risks!

Folks who have grown up in wealth, did not have the challenge of trying to figure out where their next month's fees for school/college is coming from, tend to not worry about these things!

I do agree that folks who grow up in wealth, also end up with disastrous, drug induced, loathsome or just riches to rags futures as well. Not the smart ones!

I read about an experiment that was done with twins - one grew up in a very well to do household, ended up becoming a pretty smart & made it big, early in life; the other grew up in a middle class household - made it big... but was risk averse and took a longer time to establish and make it to the big time.

Not having the money factor to worry about, does change a lot of things and the way we end up looking @ things, and it most certainly affects our decisions!

Whats your take on it?